Since the Han Dynasty (206 BC to 220 AD), lion statues have traditionally stood in front of Chinese imperial palaces, royal tombs, government offices, temples, as well as the residences of government officials and wealthy people, and are considered to have a strong mythological protective effect. They are also used in other art fields, such as door knockers and pottery. Paired lion statues are still a common decorative and symbolic element at the entrances of buildings such as banks, government agencies, and police stations.

This sculpture is one of many lion statues decorated at the north entrance of the British Museum. Legend has it that these lions will come to life at midnight, stretch lazily, yawn, and drink water.

The sculpture is the first one installed in Rittenhouse Square, and the Lion King crushing the evil snake is a sculpture created by French Romantic sculptor Antoine Louis Barry, symbolizing the monarchy's lion suppressing the evil snake. This sculpture may be seen as a meaningful statement about social order: the lion here generally refers to the royal family, and more specifically, to the city of Lyon, as its emblem features a lion with an open mouth and a royal iris decoration below. The sculpture is now housed in the Smithsonian Museum of American Art in the United States.

The brass lion, at the Shiva Temple in Barktapur Durbar Square. This temple is built directly in front of the palace. This metal lion was built in the 18th century and is made of brass with a thin layer of other metal coating on top. Nepal's metal products were later introduced. The oldest sculptures are usually built from stone. It is believed that the first batch of metal statue workers in the early days were Buddhist monks working for their Vihara religious school. In the past two or three centuries, metal works have flourished during the reign of King Mahler, when metal sculptures were coated with additional metal as a protective layer and decoration to eliminate degradation and corrosion.